Through Passion I Gain Strength
by DarthWriter76
Summary: In this Old Republic short story, a Sith Lord enters a violent confrontation with a Jedi enemy from his past. Over the course of the battle, he thinks back to the past lessons that have changed him.


Nar Riffda stared down onto the ambush location. It was a large clearing with little cover, contrasting to the dense forest surrounding it. He and about 10 other Sith hid within the forest around the area, so as soon as their targets stepped into the clearing, they would be surrounded on all sides with little cover. The positioning was a good strategy for the Sith, but it worked best if it were a blaster fight. However, these tactics did apply to lightsaber dueling as well. By attacking the Jedi while they were in the clearing, every Sith had a direct line at which they could strike at the Jedi, allowing the Sith to converge as one upon their Jedi targets. Had there been trees in the way, the time it would take to get into battle would increase, and the Jedi would have more reaction time.

With Force enhanced capabilities, the Sith could clear the 7 meters between the edge of the forest and the center of the clearing in about a second. Of course, the Force allowed them to sense each other, so it would be tricky to hide themselves until the Jedi got to the center of the clearing. To hide themselves, the Sith used a power that allowed them to cloud their presence in the Force. It was a difficult ability, so the more powerful Sith had to help cloud the presences of the weaker Sith who were not as good at it.

Riffda was one of the two most powerful Sith in the group, so he had to aid the weaker ones in their efforts. The other Sith in the group who was somewhat comparable to him was an aged Cerean female, but she was everything that Riffda wasn't. Her name was Rahvin Leths, and she was extremely adept in the arts of the Force. She could throw small tanks around like they were toys, absorb blaster bolts with her bare hands, and summon lightning that left opponents helplessly spasming. Still, these were her brute force, simple weapons. Her more fancy weapons were terrible spells that could disintegrate limbs, and horrific illusions that could drive opponents insane. These finer weapons required large amounts of time to concentrate, and that did not happen very often on the battlefield. Still, there were times where she had these opportunities, like now. As they waited for the Jedi to close in, she was probably gathering her energies for some terrible spell.

Riffda, by contrast, was only moderately powerful in the Force. By the standards of a Sith master, that meant he was relatively weak in his powers. Still, Riffda commanded the Force in other ways. He knew how to use it to bolster his physical capabilities, and he was even better at this than Leths. He once kept fighting despite getting shot in the gut twice, and he even won against the Jedi Knight he was fighting.

Where Riffda was really good was with his lightsaber. Alone, he once fought a member of the Jedi Council and won. Padawans died in seconds when facing his relentless fury, and it took four Jedi Knights to have an equally matched battle. Riffda used the fifth form, called Djem So, which was the most physically demanding of the seven forms. He followed up defenses with immediate counter-attacks, and he put strength and power into his strikes. Mobility was lost in Djem So, but he supplemented his technique with Makashi, the second form. Makashi was aggressive, but while it lacked power strikes, it used clever tactics, leverage, and great footwork to make up for these shortcomings. With a hint of Makashi mixed into his Djem So, his mobility was not so bad. Some of the power of Djem So was lost, but it resulted in a balanced aggression with both mobility and power.

Leths, on the other hand, had very little ability with her lightsaber. As she aged, she lost physical ability, but gained more wisdom and power in the Force. Even with this, she had always chosen a study of the Force over lightsaber combat. Her form was the sixth one, Niman. It was completely balanced, with the added benefit of being easy to learn. Niman was easy to get a basic grip of, but difficult to get anything more. While learning was fast early on, it slowed down after that. Leths did enough practice to maintain her skills with the blade, but not enough to improve them.

As a Cerean, Leths was human like in looks, but had a taller head, providing room for her second heart. She wore the traditional black robes of the Sith, hiding all but her face and her hands. Her face was wrinkled and aged, and like all Sith, her eyes were yellow. She kept her lightsaber hidden away within the folds of her robes.

Riffda, by contrast, was a powerfully built male Karkadon. The Karkadons were an aquatic species, nicknamed the "Sharks" so to their shark-like qualities. His skin was dark blue and white, and he had a sharp set of teeth. His set of dark blue armor blended in well with the night, just like Leths's black robes. He clutched his lightsaber tightly in one hand, and a vibroknife held backhand in the other. The knife would be easily cut by a lightsaber, so it could not parry, but its short, 1/4 meter blade was easy to slip through defenses. His predator eyes searched for the Jedi, though the Force had already detected their presences.

Riffda kept his lightsaber deactivated, as its crimson hue would give away his presence. Stealth was key as the Jedi closed in. The Force told him that they were at about 11 meters from the center of the clearing. The party of Jedi, he now knew numbered 14. Leths probably figured that out long ago, but she might have been too focused on whatever spell she was preparing. The Jedi were walking casually through the forest, and Riffda did not know where they were going, or what they were doing. He tried to remember back to when Kaan gave him the mission.

Flashback Begins

Riffda moved through the camp casually, knowing there could be no danger that he did not know about yet. It was midday, and Kaan had sent him into his tent for a personal briefing. Whatever was going to happen, it must be of some significance, given that Kaan was giving him the mission personally. He just hoped it involved battle. The Sith had been waiting at their camp for three days, now, and the only battles were small skirmishes.

The Battle Ruusan was in a stalemate. Both Jedi and Sith were in a stalemate. For the first time in a long time, the Jedi and Sith had abandoned their non Force-Sensitive armies, and battled it out in a battle of all Force-Users. Nearly every Jedi and every Sith was at Ruusan, though some Jedi denied the order saying all Jedi needed to go to Ruusan. After heavy fighting, both armies on Ruusan were tired, weary, and injured.

Riffda hoped that they were not negotiating a peace treaty. The Sith, under the title of the "Brotherhood of Darkness", would not have peace. Riffda would not let it happen. The "Army of Light" that the Jedi now called themselves needed to be destroyed. As long as Riffda lived, there would be no peace. Peace is lie, there is only passion. Through passion I gain strength, through strength I gain power, through power I gain victory, through victory my chains are broken. Reciting the code of his order helped him, he felt impassioned again. Kaan would hopefully send him to fight. So, he stepped into the tent.

"Dark Lord, Riffda!" Kaan said, happy. After Riffda greeted Kaan, he noticed another figure standing in the tent. Kaan then said, "This is Dark Lord Leths. She will be your partner in the assignment that I will give you." Riffda smiled. Assignment sounded good. Assignment meant fighting. "You are to be joint commanders of a group of recent graduates from our Korriban academy. When midnight comes, take them to here," Kaan said as he pointed to a clearing on a map of the surrounding area. "You are to ambush a group of Jedi that will pass through that area. I want every Jedi in that group dead. And there is nothing more that you need to know."

Flashback Ends

The memory brought no answers, only more questions. Why was Kaan so ambiguous? Why are the Jedi passing through this area? Why am I being paired up with Leths? Why am I... He suddenly forced himself out of his thoughts. He needed to focus. The Jedi were only a few meters away from him. He looked down from his tree based perch to see the Jedi party nearing him. They were about ten meters away from the center of the clearing. He looked down at the approaching Jedi group and was suddenly shocked when the Jedi Master was Selan Mar-Shayal.

In that moment, he let his guard down. It was only a fraction of a second, but that was all Selan, an experienced Jedi Master, needed to notice him. "Sith!" She yelled as she activated her lightsaber and stepped back into a defensive posture. The Jedi Knights and Padawans behind her activated their blades, too, a fraction of a second after her. As they adopted fighting stances, the Sith, as one, leapt down from the trees, lightsabers activated. Riffda was in front of the horde of Sith, and he was the first to land.

The Jedi were not in the clearing, they had sensed Riffda before then. Due to Riffda's error, the Jedi had avoided their trap. Now that the Sith had lost the element of surprise, the battle was matched fairly evenly. Before anyone had time to think or analyze, Riffda and Selan lead charges of Sith and Jedi, respectively.

Then, Riffda realized that Leths was still in the trees, and she had not yet unleashed any spells.

He and Selan were now three meters away, and they both began their opening blows. Riffda prepared for Selan's emerald blade to meet his crimson blade in a fierce clash, and he began a zone four strike from right to left, hoping to cut Selan's legs off at the waist. However, before they met, Selan suddenly leapt high into the air, sailing over his head. He brought his vibroblade up to try to stab her before she could pass him, but was too late. He turned to see her leap over all the Sith, straight for Leths... And then he spun around to face two padawans coming towards him.

His vibroblade hit one in the gut, and his lightsaber cut the other's head clean off. The recent Sith graduates behind him yelled out in an animalistic battle cry, and he joined them. Battle felt good. Meanwhile, behind them, Selan sailed toward Leths. She held up a shield of Light Side energy to block the Dark Side attack she knew was coming, and protect the other Jedi. Still, she was caught by surprise when she felt two Padawans die. At that moment, in her hesitation, it hit.

Every single ounce of her shield was decimated by a wave of power that tried to disintegrate her hand. Still, every single ounce of the attack was drained by her shield. The attack had failed, but Selan's Light Side energies had been drained, and she was left defenseless against any Force power. However, Leths did not even have her lightsaber in her hand, and Selan still had her lightsaber coming in for attack. As Selan continued her leap through the air towards Leths, Leths tried to raise a defense against the enemy warrior sailing towards her.

Leths had no time for a Force attack to send Selan back, and it was all she could do to raise her hand up to try to stop Selan's blade. A lightsaber could cut straight through a hand as if it were butter, so Selan slightly redirected her attack so she could sever Leths's hand as well before cutting off Leths's head. Her strike made contact with Leths's hand.

Then, it stopped. Selan continued to push forward as she landed on the branch where Leths was standing. The two warriors stood there on the branch, Leths's hand stopping Selan's blade from connecting on what would be a killing blow. Then, Selan understood. Leths was using a power called tutiminus. It allowed a user to stop blaster bolts and other energy based attacks with their hands, but very few users could stop lightsabers. Leths was one of those few.

Selan disengaged, then began another attack. Before she could strike, though, Leths sent a push through the Force at Selan, sending her off the tree branch. Selan landed on her feet, and began another attempt to reach the tree. At long range, Leths dominated with the Force, and Selan had no chance, but if she could get in close, Selan was far more skilled at lightsaber dueling than Leths.

Selan again leapt for the tree, trying to get to Leths where they could duel. Leths tried to unleash Force Lightning, but Selan twisted out of the way and landed nimbly on the branch. Leths dodged backwards to avoid a killing blow, then finally activated her own lightsaber. For once, when Selan attacked again, Leths blocked it with her lightsaber. The duel had begun.

Riffda howled in his anger and in his passion for battle as he began a duel with the Jedi Knights. There were four, making him in the middle of an even battle. The remaining Padawans went to fight his acolytes, making everything even out. He faced four Knights, an even match, Leths faced Selan, an even match, and his eleven acolytes faced eleven Padawans, an even match. This would be a good battle.

The four Knights he fought were all in their 30s, but they were certainly diverse. A female Nautolan with a green blade, a male Iktotchi with a yellow blade, a female Gand with a blue blade, and a green skinned male Twi'lek with a blue blade were facing off with him. They surrounded him on all sides. Using an Ataru ready stance as a simple lie, he switched into Shii-Cho to spin around in a Sarlacc Sweep. The attack didn't hit anyone, but its fury caused each opponent to step back for a second. Going to a form he was more familiar with, Makashi, he stepped up before the Jedi could converge on him, picking out the Nautolan.

A swift set of strikes drove his opponent back, and then he turned to the other three opponents. He sidestepped their attacks to go for the unprotected flank of the Twi'lek. Before he could strike, the Nautolan came back in, again forcing him to move. He turned around to counter the Nautolan, forcing his opponent to get in the way of the others. Switching to his primary form, Djem So, he pushed the Nautolan back again, before the other three could once again attack.

A forearm slap knocked back the Gand leading the charge, but the Iktotchi and Twi'lek did well together, holding their ground until the Gand and the Nautolan could rejoin them. To counter, he leapt out of the way horizontally, not wanted to fight all four at once. The Nautolan was a bit slow in turning around, so Riffda leapt back in, his red blade homing in on the doomed Jedi. The Nautolan never even saw what hit him. Riffda's red blade hit him from behind, strabbing through the heart, then Riffda's foot knocked the dead body down, getting smashed beneath the weight of Riffda. The Sith Lord stood on the dead body, silently challenging the Gand in the middle, the Iktotchi on the left, or the Twi'lek on the right to come at him. The odds had turned in his favor.

Selan used her acrobatic style of Form 4, Ataru, to her advantage in the treetops. Ataru was both aggressive and acrobatic, and its style worked well in the treetops where she and Leths were fighting. Selan was far faster than her aged opponent, and she took advantage of it. Darting around and attacking from all angles, Leths never even attacked. Leths's style, Niman, was normally balanced, but Selan's ferocious assault gave her no time to do anything but parry. Leths's primary goal was to get a break long enough to use the Force and restore her advantage, but Selan refused to give her such opportunity.

Suddenly, Leths made a huge mistake. Her back foot slipped, and she fell from the branch that she was on. Leths's lightsaber fell from her hand as she hit the ground hard, and Selan leaped up, sailing through the air as she again prepared to finish off her disarmed opponent. However, halfway to the ground, Selan realized the "mistake" by Leths was planned. The "mistake" gave Leths time to rip a nearby tree from the ground, and suddenly, Selan was hit midair by a small tree. Selan was knocked out of the air like a smashball, and she hit the ground far harder than Leths. Leths stood up, but did not retrieve her lightsaber.

She tried to push Selan backward with the Force, but the blow never connected. What Leths did not notice was that the Jedi Padawans had defeated the Sith Acolytes. Only one Padawan had survived, but he charged forward, absorbing the Force attack with his body. He was suddenly sent flying backwards, over Selan, before hitting a tree with such force that he was dying. Either his skull, neck or spine was shattered, and Selan sensed that death was near. There was nothing she could do about it. His sacrifice might have saved her, for it gave her time.

Finding her lightsaber with the Force, she pulled on it, sending it flying through the air. However, rather than sending it into her hand, she sent it to Leths. Leths's head, more specifically. It was deactivated, but the hard pommel sent a throbbing wave of pain through Leths's skull. Her opponent fell to the ground, unconscious, and Selan sent the blade into her hand. Sensing there was nothing left she could do for the Padawan who saved her, she moved forward to kill her opponent.

The Gand attacked first, she seemed to be the bravest and most powerful in the group he was fighting. He stepped back to avoid her lunge, and then the Twi'lek and Iktotchi moved in to attack, preventing the Gand from continuing. Then, just as Riffda knew she would, she leapt over the Twi'lek and Iktotchi, hoping to rejoin the fight. Riffda brought his lightsaber up to strike at her, but she easily parried. Still, the parry opened up her defenses for Riffda to throw his vibroblade straight at her heart. The strike connected, and her jump turned into a fall as the dead body, vibroblade still in it, flew over Riffda and hit the ground with a thud.

Riffda was already onto his remaining few targets. He sent a ferocious series of Djem So strikes at them and pushed the two back. Distracting the Twi'lek with a feigned lunge, he parried the Iktotchi's strike and countered with a high kick to the jaw. He attacked the Twi'lek, but after a few strikes, the Iktotchi was already back on his feet, charging in. No matter. He sent another furious attack at the Twi'lek before suddenly turning his focus slightly to the Force. After using it to dislodge his vibroblade from the Gand's dead body, he sent the bloody blade at the charging Iktotchi, who never saw it coming.

After seeing his friends die along with his hope, the Twi'lek attacked desperately with one last, wild strike. It was very well placed and came in at a surprising angle, nearly getting Riffda on his sword arm. However, a quick spin turned the tables, and Riffda severed both of his opponent's wrists. As he let loose a killing lunge, he sensed no fear in the Jedi, only serenity.

There is no emotion, there is peace.

There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.

There is no passion, there is serenity.

There is no chaos, there is harmony.

There is no death, there is the Force.

Riffda snatched himself out of thinking about the Jedi Code. He had no reason to ponder on its lies. He suddenly felt distaste when he realized that he was impressed by the honor in the Jedi's death. As Darth Revan once said, "Honor is a fool's prize, glory is of no use to the dead."

The Jedi is dead, so who cares about his "honorable" life and death? As Riffda turned his eyes to the rest of the battle, he saw plenty of dead bodies, both Jedi and Sith. He smiled. The death felt good, it only added to the adrenaline of battle. He surveyed to see what opponents still remained.

He smiled even more when Selan was all that was left from both armies, and that he could get her kill to himself. He strode toward Selan, ready to finish what he had started so long ago.

Flashback Begins

"Nar," she said. "We need to talk." He knew what Selan was referencing. For almost ten years, Selan and Nar had both been padawans under Jedi Master Ulan Mars. However, for the past two, they had been involved in a more personal relationship. They had not married yet, though they planned to do so, even though it was forbidden by the Jedi Order.

They very first tenant said, "There is no emotion." This defied emotions like hate, anger, and fear, but they defied all emotions, too. Love, of course, was among them. Passion fueled the Dark Side, basically. Certainly, the philosophers amongst the Sith may say the relationship between the Dark Side and passion is more complex than just that, but the fact is, passion is intertwined with the Dark SIde.

Passion is also intertwined with power. The Jedi had been ignoring the power of the Dark Side, and the power of passion. Nar's love with Selan had shown him that. Sure, the Jedi said, "The Dark Side is quicker and easier, but not stronger," but they were wrong. Nar had felt the power of passion in his love with Selan. He was recognizing the Dark Side, and he hoped she would, too. But not yet. She was not ready.

"Master Ulon is seeing it," she said. He is recognizing the passion between us. "We need to end this relationship. It is drawing you to the Dark Side. I can feel it, and Master Ulon can, too." Nar sighed. Things were unraveling, and if she was not ready to accept the Sith...

"Listen, Selan. I know I tapped into the Dark Side when the pirates of the G'rrmd held you hostage. But did you see what happened?! I became stronger! Are you ignorant of the power that passion gave me?"

"You tracked the pirates to the colony with their homes, their families! The child that died was not an accident. I felt it."

Nar realized he had no choice. It was too late for Selan. She would never accept the Dark Side. "Selan, I'm sorry. I... cannot stay within the Jedi Order if it will be like this. If you cannot accept power for what it is, then I guess this is goodbye."

Flashback Ends

He smiled at the thought of killing Selan. It had been a long time since they last met, when he had left the Jedi Order. Now he could finally reach a conclusion with Selan. One of them would die today. He knew it.

Reactivating his lightsaber, Nar approached Selan. Selan moved away from a still alive, but unconscious, Leths, so she could face him. An orangish Mon Calamari, Selan stood out from the forest backdrop, though her green hued saber fit in nicely. Were it not for all the blood, it would have made for a nice, colorful, picture. With Nar's blue-gray skin and red saber, they could create a rainbow.

They both held aggressive stances, Nar in Djem So, Selan in Ataru, and they were only meters away. It would take a step to get in range for an attack, and neither opponent was willing to make the first step. Then, Selan made her move.

To an outside observer, they moved at the same time, but it was Selan who moved first. A quick twist followed by a lunge, Nar batted it away and countered with a devastating uppercut. She leapt over it, and tried to decapitate Nar from behind. He turned around to parry and blocked it just in time. He pushed her back after a quick bladelock, then struck at her foot as he reset his stance.

Selan again attacked with a lunge, but this time, she extended a little too far. Nar knew a mistake when he saw it, and he exploited it. He came in hard and fast in a wide strike at her flank. With all her weight on front foot and a hyperextended blade, Selan was vulnerable.

Her only shot at survival was a desperate dodge forward, literally throwing herself to Nar's feet. The strike missed, millimeters too high, but Selan could feel a slight burn at the top of her head. Still, at Nar's feet, she was even more vulnerable than before. She realized she could get a force push off before his blade would come down for the kill, and she gathered her power. Suddenly, Nar's boot made contact with her skull with a painful crunch.

The kick helped, as it cleared her out of the way, but she felt pain in her face, and blood covered her head. However, before Nar again struck, she managed to leap clear, without a kick to the face. She went for his ankle, but he easily parried, and then countered with a head butt. She had to leap back, her blade to far down, and the throbbing pain at the base of her skull warning her that another hit to the head could be fatal. As he uppercutted at her, she turned to run. This was not a fight she could win. However, she could still escape with her life.

Nar watched as Selan ran. It had only been a few seconds, and she had already realized who was the superior duelist. He chuckled as he gave chase into the forest, and he thought back to what the Sith had told him about Selan.

Flashback Begins

"Lord Qordis, I have accepted your invitation to join the Brotherhood." Qordis smiled. "I knew you would. You are too strong to fail in recognizing the power of the Dark Side. I know that, in the past, you have studied privately, reading Sith manuscripts, but it is time you learn from real Sith. This academy here on Korriban will teach you in the ways of the Dark Side. However, I must ask why you have decided to come here. By what means have you witnessed the Dark Side's power?"

"I... I had a lover. She showed me what passion could do. Peace is a lie. There is only Passion. Through Passion I gain Strength. Through Strength I gain Power. Through Power I gain Victory. Through Victory my Chains are Broken." Qordis smiled, making no attempt to hide how impressed he was. "I see you have already learned our Code, impressive. And, also... What happened to this lover?"

"She still lives, but she is weak. A Jedi, she fails to see my power. Our power."

"As she lives she will give you the passion you need to continue your path to becoming a Sith. In her death, too, will she give you passion. And remember, do not deny it. Use it to fuel you. And one more question before you can enter. Is that necklace a gift from this... lover?"

Nar removed a necklace from underneath his cloak, wondering how Qordis saw it. "Yes, it is." The necklace was decorated with a stone boasting beautiful Mon Calamari engraving. Qordis reached out his hand, called on the Force, and the necklace turned to dust, falling to the ground.

Flashback Ends

Nar continued his chase with Selan. They were unable to use Force-enhanced speed due to the density of the forest, so the chase was slow. Normal beings would find it incredibly fast, but it was slow for a duo of Force users like Selan and Nar. They danced around trees, Selan always managing to stay out of Nar's range. Nar could not get close enough to use his lightsaber, Selan could not gain enough distance to use the Force. She had to concentrate entirely on running.

Then, suddenly, Selan and Nar burst onto a beach. Seeing nowhere else to go, Selan dived into the water, Nar chasing close behind. A Mon Calamari, Selan was an adept swimmer, and could breathe underwater. A Karkadon, Nar shared these same advantages. Both of them had designed lightsabers for use underwater, so this would certainly get interesting.

Still, Selan and Nar were equals in their swimming speeds. They dived deeper, both of them capable of dealing with water pressure. Selan finally went deep enough that she spotted an underwater cave. Both of them wary that something else likely called it their home, they darted in fast, still in chase, but carefully.

Selan suddenly turned a corner and proved them both right. The creature they faced, however, was more massive than what they expected. About 20 meters long, even a direct lightsaber hit was just a minor cut. Still, there were other ways to fight it. Selan was far better at this tactic than Nar, though.

Calling on the Force Power of beast control, the massive predator swam right past her and straight for Nar. He searched for a weak spot to go for as it opened its mouth, but Selan suddenly came in from the side.

He blocked the attack, but it was really only a diversion. In the time he blocked it, the creature came in for a big chomp. The only way to dodge it was to go in the mouth, so that was what Nar did. He darted inside at the last second, but one of its sharp teeth hit his ankle as he swam away from it.

Inside the mouth, he had no time to look at his injuries. Easily enough, he stabbed his lightsaber at the roof of its mouth, straight for the brain. The creature died quickly, but suddenly, its mouth flew open to reveal Selan.

She reached out in the Force, summoning a wave of power. Nar swam forward to attack, coming at her in a blink of an eye. He was too slow. She let out the Force push, sending Nar flying back towards the dead creature. He curled up to prevent any major injury, but Selan had just gained a massive advantage in her retreat.

She swam away, desperate to escape Nar. He swam after her, but she was far ahead of him, and his ankle was in pain. He looked back to see that a hole with diameter of two centimeters in was in his ankle. He used the Force to stop what bleeding he could, but he was slow, and weak. Then, Selan realized it.

She changed her path, heading for land, where he would be most vulnerable. Of course, Nar could let her go. Tactically, there was no incredible need to keep chasing. He could very well let her go. But no, he could not. He was a Sith, not a soldier. This was about revenge, not winning a war. He needed to continue for his revenge. Then, and only then, would his journey to the Dark Side be truly complete. So he continued.

His ankle hurt, and felt badly bent. Bone was exposed in his heel, and even with the Force, a small trickle of blood came from the area. He remembered, though, the power of pain, as Qordis once thought him.

Flashback Begins

The heat was unbearable. His stomach threatened to eat itself. His aquatic skin cracked in the dry desert, having little water. His weary legs begged for rest. He still had who knows what to go. The training droid kept pressing on. It was five meters ahead of him, moving at a difficult pace. Qordis had ordered he go on "a little hike," alone, with only a training droid as guide. He was to keep up with it, following it across the lifeless deserts of Korriban.

It would stop, give him food, and give him water only when Qordis ordered it to. It had done very little of that, and Nar wondered if it never intended to return to the academy. It could very well lead him in the desert to die, and he could do nothing about it. Well, not nothing. The droid had large supplies of food that it carried, but it would only give him some on Qordis's orders, and Nar was told only to take it when it gave it to him.

Nar was getting tired of it. He hated it. Then, as they journeyed through a valley, he made a decision. He searched for a large boulder, but found none. So, he chose a part of the rock in the valley, and tore it from the rest of the valley. It was jagged, but fairly spherical, with a two meter radius.

Pushing it upwards with the Force, it finally reached a height of ten meters. When it did, he pushed it downward with all of his hatred on top of the droid. Lifting it off the ruins of the evil machine, he hurled it away. The droid was damaged and flat, along with the food it carried, but he knew it would still give him nutrition, so he ate. He ate slowly, enjoying it.

After about fifteen minutes he had eaten a third of his food supply, and he felt satisfied. He began to move on, using the Force as his guide. The academy was easy to sense in all of its Dark Side power.

After about a kilometer, Qordis found him.

The shuttle dipped down, landing in front of him with a hiss. It was dark, black, and Nar sensed the power of the Dark Side. Its boarding ramp extended, and Qordis stepped out. He was not at all angry.

"You have done well, apprentice. You turned all the pain in you into hatred, strength and power. You used that to break your chains. The pain, power, it set you free. You were not bound by the limits of your own strength, you were bound by the limits of my word. Finally, the pain allowed you to defy my command, and survive."

"Pain is a form of passion. You must find passion in all of its forms, and use it. Turn your pain, your joy, your hatred into strength. Strength gives power. Power gives victory. Victory breaks chains. You have shown your passion can overcome your enemies in the past, but your passion has always been subservient to your loyalty to me. Now that has changed. Your passion has overcome the last bond keeping you and apprentice. New bonds will come up, and passion can break them. Remember this, Nar Riffda. You will need it as a Sith Lord." Nar only gave a grim smile. Formalities were a form of showing loyalty.

Flashback Ends

With that in mind, he charged forward. His pain helped him protect himself from quick Force based attacks hurled at him, and soon, he had chased Selan to where she wanted to fight him. It was a small island, about 15 meters in diameter, with no trees. There was both sand and grass, they saw as they approached it.

Selan leapt out of the water first, landing in the middle of the island. She landed in the Ataru stance as Nar followed after her, leaping out of the water towards her. He sailed up in a beautiful arch, then came down as she dodged his opening attack.

They both righted themselves, centered on the island. They were each about seven meters away from the water, with a meter in between. They eyed each other down for a moment, then Nar attacked. Their final battle had begun.

His strike was a power strike for her head. She quickly dodged back to avoid it, and he overswung. He could tolerate and even use the pain in his left ankle, but that didn't change the fact that it could not support his weight. He kept all his weight on his right foot in front, his back foot dangling uselessly.

As she responded with a similar overhand strike, he realized how disadvantaged he was. He could not pivot, he could not shift his weight, and could not retreat. He blocked it, but it left him vulnerable. She swept out her foot, going for his right knee. If she connected, he would likely collapse, and it would be all over.

He realized he had one shot, and it was not a good one. Her blade prevented an upward retreat, and the uselessness of his left foot prevented a backwards or sideways retreat. He picked the only one that was somewhere near feasible, and that was up.

Her blade was in the way, but it was his only shot. Leaping up, entirely with his right foot, he spun to avoid her deadly lightsaber. He got over the kick, but she twisted her blade as his right arm, holding his lightsaber, tried to extend out of the way. His right arm wasn't fast enough. Her lightsaber came down, and hit it at the shoulder. It seared across his abdomen, leaving a burnt feeling in his chest.

It cauterized the wound as usual, but Nar could not fight off the pain and shock. His lightsaber fell to the ground, as he still was sent upwards by his own momentum. He screamed in anger, hate, and pain on the way up, and he he screamed in anger, hate, and pain on the way down.

His predicament worsened as Selan cut both legs off his defenseless falling body. He hit the ground hard, barely conscious as he rolled away. He only managed to moan as she approached his remains. She activated her lightsaber and came in to finish it.

She raised her lightsaber to attack, and looked down in him in hatred. After all these years, she still felt betrayed. She would finally get her revenge. The hatred swelled within her like a bubble ready to explode. He could feel her emotion as it grew.

"No," she said, tossing her lightsaber aside. "I will not give in to my emotions. I will not kill you. Not now, when emotions cloud my judgement."

The concept of getting defeated by someone so weak made Nar feel so much hatred. So much hate, so much power. He extended his free hand, his left hand, and reached for his lightsaber in the Force. It came to his hand. Selan reacted in the blink of an eye, sending her lightsaber sailing towards her.

She was too late. The lightsaber reached his hand, and he swung out with all of his hatred. He threw it at her, guided by the Force, and his lightsaber cut her head clean off. He send it back into his hand, then fell back down to the ground. He had won, and Selan had paid the price for mercy.

He activated his emergency beacon, and began to wait.

*About half an hour later*

Leths approached the small island where Nar's signal came from. Sure enough, he was there, but he was on the ground, missing an arm and two legs. The dead body of Selan Mar-Shayal was nearby, and she quickly pieced together a general summary of what happened.

"I see you won, but with a high cost," she said with a slight smile. "She was weak," he responded confidently. "So are you," Leths said with a more prominent, even darker smile. "Never. With prosthetics, I can resume my powerful status." Leths smiled even more.

"No, prosthetics are far too expensive to waste on someone like you. This is war, and we lack the funding for such luxuries. You are weak, and no longer deserve to be a Sith."

"Mercy, Leths, mercy, please. I beg you. Mercy." Leths fed on his terror, his hatred. "Those who beg for mercy," she began, "Are too weak to deserve it." Nar let out one last blast of energy, but he was no match for her power in the Force. She extended her hands, and Force Lightning was unleashed upon a helpless Nar. "Noooo!" he yelled, in pain and hate. She did not stop. He was weak, just like Selan was, so he deserved to die.


End file.
